From drones to beer line cleaning, flavoured fries to golf putting, beauty and spa salons to accounting businesses, there was truly something for every interest, skill set and budget at the Sydney Franchising & Business Opportunities Expo.

Held at the Royal Hall of Industries at Moore Park 18-20 March, the Expo filled the historic venue with dynamic businesses, plus a free seminar series and plenty of information about becoming your own boss. In the seminar theatre, Pippa Hallas from Ella Baché and John O’Brien from Poolwerx wowed the audience with the keynote presentations, while Sharon Jurd, director of Something for every one at Sydney HydroKleen and Sharon Jurd Events shared ‘How to survive a franchise’s first five years’. 

They were joined by a myriad of experts, franchisees and franchisors who passed on their experience, tips and advice.The Sydney Franchising & Business Opportunities Expo is first in a series of four expos held annually around Australia.

Upcoming Expos

The next show is in Perth on 15 May, followed by Brisbane 23-24July, and Melbourne 26-28 August. Exhibition Manager Fiona Stacey says the historic venue provided a great ambience, but what really made the show standout was the quality and variety of the exhibitor’s stands. “I was amazed by the sheer diversity of businesses on offer at this show,” she says. “There were also many new food offerings, such as health-conscious Skinnys Grill, delicious fries at Potato Corner, and hamburgers from the USA’s Johnny Rockets.”

Exhibitors reported a good quality crowd at the show, with a large majority of visitors ready to invest in the right concept.“We had an amazing show, we never stopped,” says Kevin Scrimshaw from National Drones, Australia’s first aerial photography, videography and surveillance franchised business system. “There is so much interest and they are all the right people. We had about 30 solid enquiries each day. 

Now we are looking forward to Perth, Melbourne and Brisbane.

“We had 10 or so good solid leads from the weekend and I think 4-5 are very strong. It is also a great branding exercise for Franchising Expo, some people don’t even realise we are a franchise until they see us here.” Ray Titus, CEO of United Franchise Group, was visiting from Florida to help launch the group’s latest brand, Experimac, a franchise to repair and upgrade Apple products. 

“We launched last year in USA and have already sold 60 franchises,”he says. “We know the same growth will happen here, there is a lot of interest and we have hundreds of great leads, the quality of visitors is very impressive. I’ll be very surprised if we don’t have 5-6 stores in Australia as a direct result of this show.

Another new concept, Portermark beer line cleaning, had an excellent debut at the Franchising Expo. “We sold one franchise straight off the stand, the money is already in the bank!” says managing director Jeff Rankin. “We have another 10 leads, they are very solid and I expect to convert at least five of them, so it has been a very good show for us.”

Fiona Stacey says organisers are gearing up for a new one day boutique show at Crown Perth on 15 May. It will feature a mix of local Western Australian franchisors and advisors, as well as new and well-known national brands.

Pre-registration is available online for this show and Stacey says companies wishing to exhibit will need to contact her soon to secure one of the few remaining stands. “The Franchising and Business Opportunities Expo is the best place to take the first steps towards being your own boss, or growing your business,” says Stacey. “It’s also an event where the industry comes together to educate, inform and network – the place where you can really turn your ambition into action.”